WE ARE WHAT WE EATFood affects more than just how you look, it also influences how you behave.By Steve Edwards

If you're putting a lot of effort into your workouts and supplements but still not feeling the rush of energy and joy you read about on the Message Boards, the reason might be your food choices. The next time you reach for fast food or decide to simply skip a meal, consider how your diet affects the way that you feel. After all, what good is having a slim, healthy body if you're not able to enjoy it?

In Appleton, Wisconsin, one of the most amazing occurrences in the history of education happened in the late 1990s. In 1997, Appleton Central Alternative High School (ACAHS) implemented a health food program. The soda and candy machines were removed and the cafeteria quit serving standard school lunch: burgers, fries, etc. A company, called Natural Ovens set up a program to serve salad, veggies, whole grain breads, fresh water, and meats using only healthy recipes. The results were astonishing. Grades went up, truancies went down, fights stopped occurring, arguments were rare, and the teachers were able to focus on teaching instead of disciplining students.

Junk food doesn't just make you fat: it alters the way you think, feel, and react. It affects your entire emotional state. Yet we, as a country, are eating more junk food than ever. The worst of it often goes to our youth.

According to statistics cited in Eric Schlosser's book, Fast Food Nation, some of the worst meat goes to fast food restaurants, schools, and pets, in that order. So it's no surprise that an entire school's population might benefit from better nutrition. What's surprising is just how much it's changed. The school cafeteria has a long history of serving less than palatable cuisine. Those of my generation probably harbor "fond" memories of such brain foods as Salisbury steak, corned beef hash, and soggy peas. The newer generation is faring far worse. In the late '80s, soft drink companies started contracting with schools to place vending machines in school hallways. Schools, often desperate for money, caved in.

Fast food companies followed suit and soon, soggy peas and processed steak were replaced by fries and soft drinks. The trade-off was going from poor nutrition to bottom-of-the-barrel.

Appleton Central Alternative School is, well, an "alternative school," a place where problem students end up. Greg Bretthauer, the dean of students, was offered the job before the new health food program went into effect and found the students "rude, obnoxious, and ill-mannered." The school had so many problems with discipline and weapons violations that a police officer was recruited to be on the staff.

The new program had an instantaneous effect. In the state of Wisconsin, each school is required to file an annual report detailing the number of students who have dropped out, been expelled, committed suicide, or got caught using drugs or carrying weapons. Since the start of the program, the numbers at ACAHS have been the same each year: zero.

This would be a stat that any public or private school would be proud of. For an alternative school, it's nothing short of astonishing. The story "A Different Kind of School Lunch," published in Pure Facts, the newsletter for the Feingold Association of the United States, reports that other schools in the Appleton district have made more moderate changes, such as eliminating candy and pop machines, and have also seen results.

"I see the kids this year as calmer, easier to talk to," said middle school teacher Dennis Abrahm.

"If you've been guzzling Mountain Dew and eating chips and you're flying all over the place, I don't think you're going to pick up a whole lot in class," stated Mary Bruyette, a teacher at ACAHS who claims things are now different. "I don't have to deal with daily discipline issues; that just isn't a factor here."

One student may have summed it up best, saying, "Now that I concentrate, I think it's easier to get along with people 'cause now I'm paying attention to what they have to say and not just worrying about what I have to say to them."

And how is the program working now, five years from its inception?

"I don't want to say better than ever, because it's always worked," said Bretthauer, "but we've made minor revisions, based on experience, to improve it. We've incorporated flaxseed and focused on the omega content of foods. Made fresh water even more available. We have monthly fruit smoothie days, and have really worked to incorporate more education about eating away from schooltrying to get students to follow through at home. We've found the diet does play a major role in increasing the ability to concentrate. And we haven't had any type of emotional outbursts, still!"

On why this phenomenon has been slow to sweep the nation, Bretthauer rationalizes, "The economics of past practice is one thing and people are always resistant to change, but it's coming. In the next two to three years, most schools will have major changes. It's starting to happen. I think L.A. is eliminating soda machines and any carbonated beverages from being sold in their schools."

"This year, we had a junk food day and served nothing but sugar-laced foods, caffeinated beverages, foods prepared with palm oils, etc., and it had a significant effect on the kids. They ran around like hyped-up squirrels, felt sick, couldn't seem to concentrate."

"Pleeease," they said. "Don't have another one this year."

Our aim at Beachbody is about more than changing the way you look. It's changing how you feel and transforming your life. More than ever, this should validate the cliché "you are what you eat." What could be a better reason for changing you diet than improving your mental well-being? Give it a shot. You can be your own proof. Since some people have told me that they wouldn't have believed this story had I not talked to Mr. Bretthauer myself, here is some more info. You can read more about the school and the diet's effects on Appleton Central Alternative High School's Web site.

THE ACAHS DIET

Hey, if it worked for them! Here's what the kids at Appleton Central Alternative High School eat. Give it a week, a month, or more. See how differently you feel when you wake up, when you workout, how you react to stress, and whether or not your quality of life has improved. You may be surprised at the difference your diet can make.

Business as usual will not work for a healthy nutrition program. There needs to be a champion for the cause. Appleton Central Alternative High School serves both a nutritious breakfast and lunch. There are no vending machines within the school and no carry-in food and/or beverages are allowed. In addition, ACAHS offers bottled water and encourages students to carry water bottles. Ninety-five per cent (95%) of Central students participate in the nutrition program.

Hot Entrée: Central offers no al la cart items. Two on-site cooks prepare the meals daily, and no food is prepared by frying in a grease product. Meat products used include lean pork, chicken, turkey and fish (no beef). A variety of spices, soymilk products and tofu are used as natural flavor enhancers in many of the recipes. Because we participate in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), we need to offer milk; however, no other dairy products are utilized. In addition, we qualify for and receive federal commodities, selecting only offerings that are nutritious and not heavily processed.

Slim in 6® Success Stories are already coming in! But we're not making any final decisions on who comes to Hollywood to be a star in Debbie Siebers next TV promotion until May. So stay with it, and make sure to submit your entry by May 16th, 2003!